Five-times World Rally Champion shakes down Red
Bull Racing RB4 at Silverstone ahead of impressive
turn of pace at FIA Barcelona test on Mon 17 Nov
and Wales Rally GB on 4 December.
TOO FAST FOR THE FORESTS! Loeb Impresses at F1 Test
Posted: November 20, 2008 4:55 PM
The first test of the winter got underway in Spain
and, at the wheel of the RB4, as part of a "thank
you" from Red Bull for winning the World Rally
Championship yet again, the driver was Sebastien
Loeb (France).
Having had a shakedown at Silverstone last week,
the Frenchman had a better idea of what to expect
and produced an excellent performance throughout
the day. After spending most of the morning
settling in and finding a good balance on the car,
Loeb was actually put to more "serious" use in the
afternoon, evaluating the Bridgestone slick tyres
which will be used in 2009 and providing the team
with valuable data.
"I don't think I'd like to take this much horsepower
into the forests!" quipped the Frenchman. "It was a
great experience and I had fun, although I have to
say that driving one of these cars is tougher
physically than driving my rally car. Towards the end
of the day, I began to get a good feel for the car
and enjoyed the sensation of it moving around on
the track. I have to say that the level of grip in the
high-speed corners is very impressive."
Unofficial times from Barcelona
- Monday 17 November 2008:
1. Takuma Sato, Toro Rosso, 1:20.763 2. Sebastien Buemi, Toro Rosso, 1:21.071
3. Alexander Wurz, Honda, 1:21.198
4. Pedro de la Rosa, McLaren, 1:21.417
5. Gary Paffett, McLaren, 1:21.956
6. Luca Badoer, Ferrari, 1:23.264
7. Robert Kubica, BMW Sauber, 1:22.341
8. Sebastien Loeb, Red Bull, 1:22.503
9. Nelson Piquet, Renault, 1:22.560
10. Christian Klien, BMW Sauber, 1:22.883
11. Nico Hulkenberg, Williams, 1:23.467
12. Vitantonio Liuzzi, Force India, 1:23.794
13. Adrian Sutil, Force India, 1:23.832
14. Marc Gene, Ferrari, 1:24.177
15. Bruno Senna, Honda, 1:24.343
16. Giedo van der Garde, Renault, 1:24.908
17. Lucas di Grassi, Honda, 1:25.512
SEBASTIEN LOEB TO TEST A RED BULL F1 CAR
Posted: November 4, 2008 11:19 AM
Fresh from getting out of his Citroen C4 WRC at the end of Rally Japan, newly-crowned
five-time World Rally Champion Sébastien Loeb was handed a fantastic prize for his title
by Red Bull, Citroen Sport’s partner.
Red Bull Racing will give the Frenchman a chance to test one of its RB4s at the official
Formula 1 test session on 17 November in Barcelona.
Beforehand, Sébastien will go to the team’s headquarters in Milton Keynes to meet Red
Bull Racing and prepare for the 17th. He will make his first acquaintance with the car
during a preliminary test at the Silverstone circuit.
Sébastien Loeb is already eagerly anticipating this amazing experience: "I’m absolutely
delighted by this present from Red Bull to celebrate my fifth World Rally Championship
title. I already got the chance to test a Formula 1 car last year, but this time the
circumstances will be a little different. I’m now going to find myself in the midst of all
the regular F1 drivers during an official test. I just hope that I don’t make a fool of
myself! On the other hand, it’s only for one day. I’d like to clear up any speculation
about me possibly switching to F1…next year I’m definitely going to be driving a Citroen
C4 WRC on the World Rally Championship !"
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